Visual Art

couple waiting for the train

Venus Anani

Photography

Change is Everywhere All Around Me

Sam Garufi

Colored Pencil

Shapes are an immutable thing that exists in the universe. They are permanent, complex, everlasting, and natural forms that will never disappear no matter how hard we try to think them away. When I add color, paint, or pen to a drawing, it’s like I’m recreating a flower or experiencing the sensation of white light passing through the eyes on a sunny drive. It becomes part of the world, an everlasting figurement that goes beyond human revelation and creation.

City Skyscraper

Sam Garufi

Pen

mariel sitting for portrait

Venus Anani

Photography

Singer Model 66

Emma Zhou

Multimedia

This installation centers around a plywood recreation of a Singer Model 66 sewing machine. As an assignment, we had to recreate an object from plywood and create an environment for it. I have always been fascinated by the past, specifically from domestic and predominantly feminine perspectives such as fashion. I chose a Singer Model 66 because it was a staple of the domestic sphere, used throughout the world by women to make and mend clothes and any other textile products. Through this installation, I sought to bring a romantic light to this seemingly mundane tool, and show the world the beauty and importance of women’s spaces.

By the sea

Anson Wang

Oil Paint

Over the past summer I went on a road trip with my family for the first time in years. We traveled North from Los Angeles, driving along Route 101 passing through Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Salinas en route to Monterey. We did the 17 mile drive near Carmel by-the-Sea, where I took a picture of my mother.

Water’s Edge

Charli McLemore

Digital Art

Disconnect, Fall

Maria Leao

Oil Paint

Disconnect, Spring

Maria Leao

Oil Paint

The Sun’s Guilt

Nicholas Simpson

Print

Circling

Nicholas Simpson

Print

When blood hits the water, all bets are off. A shark’s snout is lined with sensory organs that detect even the most minute scents to find prey. Zeroing in, they strike without warning, and the prey never knows what hit it. I felt the same way when I first laid eyes upon a whale shark at my local aquarium. Seeing this graceful creature in action, gliding through the water with an authority other animals wish they had, moved me. I’d never seen anything like it. At some point, I swear that the shark and I locked eyes for a split second, and from that day forward they became my favorite animal.

During this print’s inception, my goal was to communicate the rabbit hole of obsession I had for this animal. I felt like I was entering a realm in which there truly was no return, much like how a fish feels when it has been chosen as prey. It’s in this moment of intimacy that it felt like the animal and I truly understood each other, similar to a waltz of unity. In that spiral, it was like I’d become a shark. When you gaze into the center, maybe you’ll feel the same way.

Vibrations in Color

Sam Garufi

Multimedia

Watanabe no Tsuna

Alicia Chang

Acrylic

Point Doom

Anson Wang

Oil Paint

East Meets West

Emma Zhou

Textile

This piece is a robe in the style of the Qing Dynasty. On it, I have embroidered two dragons: a traditional dragon from Chinese folklore, and a dragon in the style of Western folklore. This piece is inspired by my personal struggles with racial identity. As a Chinese American mixed-race person, my identity is often erased by other people. I have had teachers and classmates tell me to my face that I am “only half” Chinese, or “not Asian enough” for ethnic spaces. For much of my life, I believed it. But as I reflected on my identity more, I realized that I do not see my identity as “half Chinese and half white,” but as a homogeneous mixture of the two. I stand at the overlap of two cultures, two languages, and two countries, and I am proud of it.

Nicholas Simpson

Print

Humans and animals have never had an ideal relationship. There is always something that happens between us that results in one side hurting the other. In this case, it is the animals and biodiversity that are harmed the most from actions on our end. In the case of the oceans, sea life has dealt with many forms of pollution, such as plastic, oil spills, and ghost nets via fishermen.

In my opinion, plastic has been the most haunting. Seeing photographs of sea turtles, sharks, and seals tangled up in these webs of destruction struck a chord with me. I think it’s the worst offender, because of the suffering it causes to the animal. In my collagraph print, I created a blend of the two, featuring fish swimming around in an environment that is full of manmade products, including plastic, oils, and other pollutants.

Untitled

Pema Dekyi Lama

Photography

When the Shadows Leave

Charli McLemore

Digital Art

Contributor’s Notes

Venus Anani is a gay poet, a lover, and a chronic procrastinator from Maryland/Ghana. She is 21 years old, and excited to see what’s coming next in her creative future.

Alicia Chang was born and raised in Northern California. Her artwork often reflects her cultural heritage as a Japanese and Chinese American. She enjoys practicing Kung Fu and Kendo.

Ben Cheung is a 2D, 3D, and martial artist. He is also a climber, a sprinter, and the co-editor of Rushlight.

Lili Epstein is a visual artist who has always loved being creative in any way possible. Outside of art, she enjoys playing piano, listening to music, and reading.

Sam Garufi is a 22 year old history major who is Guatemalan, and also from Massachusetts. He likes to venture deep into the forest, read books older than dirt, and listen to music that came out of the Utility Muffin Research Kitchen.

Pema Dekyi Lama is a self-taught photographer passionate about capturing meaningful moments that evoke joy and create lasting memories. Specializing in nature, portrait, and event photography, she finds fulfillment in bringing happiness to others through her work.

Maria Leao is an artist and painter from Portugal.

Charli McLemore is an award-winning artist and designer from Ridgefield, CT, who specializes in digital art, graphic and web design, and photography. Her work has been featured in local art shows and magazines. As an illustrator for Smudge Magazine and founder of Charli Creative, she channels her passion for creativity into every project.

Nicholas Simpson is a 22 year old illustrator and comic artist from Georgia. His artwork takes inspiration from many different shows and anime to tell a somewhat silly, yet impactful story. He aims to be a professional artist in the future.

Anson Wang is a creative writing major from California. He loves basketball, hip hop, films and clouds.

Emma Zhou is a neuroscience and visual arts major specializing in textile art. She is an active member of the visual art and theater departments at Wheaton College, and much of his work revolves around his mixed racial identity.